


Apologise

by raven_ariana



Category: Psy-Changeling - Nalini Singh
Genre: Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2015-08-02
Packaged: 2018-04-12 15:04:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4483931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raven_ariana/pseuds/raven_ariana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Nate decks Lucas for shouting at Tammy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Apologise

**Author's Note:**

> This is set after the scene in 'Slave to Sensation', in which Lucas finds out that Sascha has been hiding the fact that she will die once her connection to the PsyNet is severed, and is so irate that he lashes out at Tammy when she tries to defend Sascha. 
> 
> It didn't sit well with me that Lucas should get away with those words, even if he is alpha, even if he was furious. Even grown men need to know how to apologise for losing their temper, after all. And I didn't think Nate would let that go. So I wrote up a scene snippet rectifying that.

"Luc."

The DarkRiver alpha turned at the sound of his sentinel's voice, which had gone very flat. He had a feeling he knew what Nate wanted. "Nate."

"I'm going to deck you."

Nate's fist swung out before he'd finished that sentence, catching Lucas neatly in the jaw and sending him staggering backwards. To his credit as alpha, Lucas didn't go down completely, but that didn't mean the punch hadn't hurt. Nate was the one who'd taught Luc how to punch 'like a damn freight train', quoting Hawke, after all.

Lucas didn't retaliate, knowing that he sort of deserved it; only straightened and faced Nate, ready to accept this taking-down. 

Nate's eyes were burning. "You hurt Tammy."

"I know," Luc admitted, a question in his eyes. _Did I make her cry?_

Nate snorted. "As if she'd ever cry over your stupid, ugly mug." No, Tammy hadn't cried, even after Lucas' irate demand that her mate 'control' her, even after that one sentence that had diminished her value so completely for an instant. Tammy was strong, and Tammy understood why Lucas had reacted that way, so far into the mating dance. But Nate wasn't so understanding, and wasn't about to let Lucas walk away with this, alpha or not. Not when he'd found Tammy later, kneeling quietly in the twins' room, cuddling Jules and Rome close and tight, for a long, silent, ten minutes. For once, the cubs hadn't been squirming to run off, cuddling close and pawing at Tammy's face instead, instinctively aware that their mother hurt inside. 

No, Lucas didn't get to walk away from this. Not after all Tammy had done for him, for Pack. Her mate would make sure of that.

"I wasn't behaving rationally, Nate," the pain was still raw in Luc's eyes, from the knowledge that Sascha was determined to jump into a situation that would unquestionably kill her. A situation in which her alpha mate couldn't protect her. 

"I feel like decking you again," Nate growled low, hackles rising. "I don't care if you're alpha and in the middle of the mating dance, _you don't f*king get to talk to my mate like that._ She didn't cross any lines, and didn't deserve the sh*t way you treated her."

If this had been any other leopard, Lucas might have retaliated for the challenge glowing in Nate's eyes, but this _was_ Nate - and Nate and Tammy both deserved his respect, not his pulling rank when he didn't want to admit his mistakes. Besides, Tammy had been Sascha's first friend, the first leopard to embrace Sascha as Pack. Lucas wasn't arrogant enough to think that his sentinels had accepted Sascha simply because he was alpha - they had accepted her because Tammy had welcomed her, and trusted her with Jules and Rome. Tammy was teaching Sascha changeling ways, guiding her towards understanding Lucas himself. Tammy had given his precious mate her friendship, and had been trying to lend Sascha support against Lucas' occasionally overbearing personality... and yet all Lucas had done to repay her was to tear her down with his words and actions. The DarkRiver alpha felt shame growing within him, something he had not felt since he'd been a very, very young cub. 

Lucas met Nate's steely gaze, suitably chagrined that it had taken him this long to understand what Nate wanted him to do, what the _right_ thing to do was. "I was awful to Tammy."

"At least you're not far gone enough to not realise that," Nathan growled, shoving Luc in the shoulder. "Go. When I get back inside I had better find my mate happier than when you left her."

Lucas nodded and clapped Nate's shoulder as he headed in to apologise to Tammy, thankful for friends and sentinels who were strong and brave enough to call him out on his mistakes, deck him as required.


End file.
